Dili, Dec. 23, 2024 (Lusa) - A conceptual study carried out by the UK firm Wood on the Greater Sunrise gas field has confirmed the feasibility of going ahead with a processing project in Timor-Leste, the country's government announced on Monday on its official website.
"The conclusion of this study is a fundamental milestone that unequivocally confirms the viability of developing Greater Sunrise in Timor-Leste," said the government's spokesman and cabinet office minister, Agio Pereira.
"This solution will bring significant and sustainable benefits to the Timorese people and will consolidate the country's economic potential," he stressed. "We will continue to work closely with our partners to implement this vision."
According to the government, the conceptual study, which was carried out between April and November, "also confirms that the development of the project in Timor-Leste is the most advantageous for the country, guaranteeing significant economic and social benefits."
The UK company studied four main options: piping the gas from Greater Sunrise to a new unit in Timor-Leste for processing, to Darwin (in northern Australia), to the Ichthys gas field (also in Australia and operated by Japan's INPEX) or to a new Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility, also in Australia.
"The Timor-Leste Liquefied Natural Gas (TLNG) option stands out for its lower operating costs and, by enabling better overall direct and indirect returns for Timor-Leste, it will create a major socio-economic impact in the country," the government said.
It also emphasised that the study found that processing the gas from Greater Sunrise in Timor-Leste could have a "greater positive impact on Gross Domestic Product and job creation, and is also the one with the highest returns for the development consortium" of the gas field.
The consortium is made up of Timorese state enterprise Timor Gap (56.56%), operator Woodside Energy (33.44%) and Osaka Gas (10%).
"According to the study, TLNG will also make it possible to achieve better direct upstream returns for Australia," argues Timor's government.
Located 150 kilometres from Timor-Leste and 450 kilometres from Darwin, the Greater Sunrise project has been at an impasse, with Dili advocating the construction of a pipeline to the south of the country and Woodside, the consortium's second largest partner, leaning towards a connection to the existing unit in Darwin.
The permanent maritime boundary agreement between Timor-Leste and Australia determines that Greater Sunrise, a shared resource, will have to be divided, with 70% of the revenue going to Timor-Leste in the case of a pipeline to the country, or 80% if the processing is in Darwin.
The connection of the gas pipeline to the south of Timor-Leste is considered by the the country's authorities to be strategic for the country's economy.
In a joint statement released on Saturday, the prime minister, Xanana Gusmão, and his Australian counterpart, Anthony Albanese, announced that Australia had proposed making a significant investment in Timor-Leste in the form of the establishment of an infrastructure fund.
The capital for the fund, according to the statement, is to come from Australia's future revenues from Greater Sunrise.
MSE/ARO // ARO.
Lusa
